Wick holder for evaporators



M. BELL .WICK HOLDER F'oR EvAPoRAToRs yFiled Aug. 3, 1945 A TOFQNEY4 Patented Oct. 26, 1948 WICK HOLDER FOR EVAPORATORS Morris Bell, New York, N. Y., assigner to Seeman Bros., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application August 3, 1945, Serial No. 608,721

2- Claims. ,a 1

This invention relates to an evaporator and airl freshening device, particularly to an evaporator of the type consisting of a wick folded upon itself and inserted within a normally closed bottle or like receptacle containing air freshening liquid, and adapted, when the closure is revmoved from the bottle, to be withdrawn therefrom as and to any extent desired, whereby the liquid is drawn by capillary action to the exposed portion of the wick land may be disseminated into the surrounding atmosphere for freshening, purifying or deodorizing purposes.

A particular object of the invention is to provide for the wick a support or holder so designed and constructed that the wick when folded and suitably fastened in position thereover will retain its shape and not sag, whether wholly within the bottle or partially withdrawn therefrom for use.

Another object is to provide a wick of width and thickness in its folded portion such that when standing in partially withdrawn position it will be substantially free of the inner walls of the bottle, to the end that when it is withdrawn from or replaced in the bottle, liquid will not be squeezed out to flow over the top and down the sides of the bottle. y

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the evaporator with the wick partially withdrawn for use, showing the withdrawing means or wick holder and the method of fastening it to the wick.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation.

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the means provided for withdrawing the wick and holding it in any desired position. r

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross-section of the closed top portion of the bottle showing the upper end of the wick and wick holder as they will appear when the evaporator is not in use.

Referring to the drawings, the bottle I is normally closed by the cap 2 and may be filled with an air freshening liquid, such as that disclosed in Patent No. 2,326,672, to a line just below the neck portion. A wick 3, preferably of felt and rectangular in cross-section, is provided. When the evaporator is in use this wick will be partially exposed so as to evaporate liquid into the surrounding air to fr'shen it and remove objectionable odors therefrom.

complish its intended purpose.

The exact length of the folded part is immaterial provided only that it be long enough to ac- Preferably the wick when folded upon itself will have its greatest cross-sectional dimension approximately equal to or less than the inside diameter of the bottle neck, so that when withdrawn it will be substantially free of the walls of the bottle neck.

In order to hold the wick in desired withdrawn position the wick holder 4 shown in Fig. 3 is provided. This may consist of a single piece of suitable resilient wire, bent symmetrically upon itself to provide legs 5 bowed outwardly for a substantial portion of their length to bear frictionally against the walls of the bottle neck to hold the wick in desired withdrawn position. Above these bowed sections 5 each leg may be turned inwardly towards the other, then outwardly, then upwardly and again inwardly, thus forming the seat 6 for the folded part of the wick, the upper legs 'l and the loop 8 which may be grasped by the fingers to withdraw the wick from bottle. The upper legs 'l are so spaced apart as to afford a rm frictional lengagement with the bottle neck as shown in Fig. 4. The lower end of each leg 5 may be turned inwardly and downwardly as shown at 9. To fasten the wick holder d to the wick an end of the wick is passed through the loop 8, drawn downwardly past the ends 9 and there fastened by suitable means such as the staple l0 which passes thru the wick and around the ends 9.

To use the evaporator the cover 2 is removed from the bottle, the loop B grasped by the fingers and the wick drawn out for the desired distance where it is held by the pressure of the legs 5 against the bottle neck. This may be done without substantial wetting of the ngers. Similarly the wick may be returned to the bottle without touching anything but the loop 8 of the wick holder 4. Due to the proportioning of the wick and bottle neck there will be no tendency for liquid to be squeezed vout of the wick onto the outside of the bottle as the wick is lowered. The firm frictional engagement of the upper legs l of the wick holder with the bottle neck will prevent the wick holder from dropping or being accidentally pushed down into the bottle where it cannot be grasped easily.

The foregoing invention may be variously modified and embodied within the scope of the subjoined claims.

I claim as my invention:

l. A wick holder for use in an evaporator and air freshening device of the type which comprises an absorptive wick partially folded upon itself and partially immersed in an air ireshening and deodorizing fluid in a closable container with a restricted opening and adapted to be partially withdrawn therefrom by such'holder for use, said wick-holder comprising a single piece oi resilient material bent upon itself to provide. a loop positionable within the container opening for grasping by the lingers to withdraw the wick, a seat for supporting the folded part of the wick, and legs for frictional engagement with the walls oi' the container opening. the latter holding the withdrawn wick in desired position, and means for positively attaching the wick to the wick holder.

2. A wick holder for use in an evaporator and air freshening device of the type comprising a bottle having a restricted opening and containing deodorizing iluid and an absorptive wick partially folded upon itself and partially immersed in said uid, from which it may be partially withdrawn for use and maintained in partially withdrawn position by such holder; said holder comprising a single piece of resilient material bent upon itself to provide two opposed relatively long sections bowed outwardly for frictional engagement with the inner wall of the opening when 4 the wick is partially withdrawn, two opposed relatively short sections for engagement with the restricted opening when the wick is entirely within the bottle, and two opposed sections extending inwardly toward each other intermedi ate the said long and the said short sections forming a seat for supporting the loop of the wick; said wick having a folded section of such dimensions that when partially withdrawn from the bottle and standing in the restricted opening with a part projecting thereabove its maximum cross-sectional dimensions will be not substantlally greater than the inner diameter of such opening; and means for positively attaching the wick to the holder.

MORRIS BELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the i'ile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 525,646 Cox Sept. 4,1894 1,125,120 Kitzrow Jan. 19,1915 2,068,518 Simpson Jan 19, 1937 2,362,903 Keim Nov. 14, 1944 

